Zain's Custom Avatar Poll

Yes I can see those it's the others that I can't. My organisation has some irritating filtering software set up, so when I try to access the url avatars gallery a message appears telling me that they're blocked by the local server here. Nothing can really be done about it.

While we're on the subject of URL avatars though, it is currently set up in such a way that all members that haven't selected an URL avatar get the default one, this makes it annoying scanning through threads full of members with exactly the same avatar. Can the default for a member that has not selected an URL avatar be simply a blank space instead?

:bow:

I support that - if that was the case I'd be browsing with them on ~;)

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I support Zain's case. URL avatars aren't mandatory. They can tolerate relatively liberal style and content.

:rtwyes:
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Well, a big thanks to Zain for raising the question :2thumbsup: I had wondered why so many folks were going invisible, as I had never noticed the URL avatar option before. I will have to get creative now, this Nordic skin is getting a bit tight around the edges :yes:

To the original question, I don't object to it Zain, but I think the general consensus is that it's a bit "out of genre". 'Course, you also have a sig ... though I really like your current one :2thumbsup:

You can always use profile picture if you want something different.

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Originally Posted by macsen rufus

Well, a big thanks to Zain for raising the question :2thumbsup: I had wondered why so many folks were going invisible, as I had never noticed the URL avatar option before.

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Hello macsen rufus,

Do you mean that people stop displaying a small avatar because they want an URL avatar? That isn't necessary at all. Each user can store both in his/her profile. Then it's up to other individual user what to see: one, the other or both.

Hi Tosa - no, I just didn't realise I had "show URL avatar" turned off, so I saw loads of users with no avatars as a result. Now it's turned on and the likes of Noir and Cambyses now "have a face" for me. They weren't really invisible, I just wasn't looking :beam:

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URL avatars are cool but... It's somewhat disturbing to see the same default one when a particular user hasn't actually activated his. Could it be that if a member hasn't chosen to have a URL avatar, nothing is displayed in that area, as is the case with the forum avatars; or a blank (1 x 1 maybe) image used as the default?

I turned off their view just for that nuisance, FWIW...
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Originally Posted by Mouzafphaerre

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URL avatars are cool but... It's somewhat disturbing to see the same default one when a particular user hasn't actually activated his. Could it be that if a member hasn't chosen to have a URL avatar, nothing is displayed in that area, as is the case with the forum avatars; or a blank (1 x 1 maybe) image used as the default?

I turned off their view just for that nuisance, FWIW...
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I did mention this earlier in the thread, it can only be a good thing and I only hope that it does get implemented.

I'm not sure how the URL avatars work, but it seems to me that when they're turned on that unless an avatar is specified the user gets that default one. If leaving this blank doesn't help then surely the default avatar could be an image 1x1 pixels in size or something more inventive. As far as I can see the URL avatars are placed between the Username and custom titles in the post row. I would not be difficult to move them down to sit below the gallery avatar and set the default image as something very small and unintrusive (logo etc).

:bow:

Hello,

Several different things have been tried when a user didn't select an URLavatar. Right now there a couple default ones. It's still too repetitive, just leaving it blank isn't really encouraging either.

It should be possible to do something.

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Originally Posted by Mouzafphaerre

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URL avatars are cool but... It's somewhat disturbing to see the same default one when a particular user hasn't actually activated his. Could it be that if a member hasn't chosen to have a URL avatar, nothing is displayed in that area, as is the case with the forum avatars; or a blank (1 x 1 maybe) image used as the default?

I turned off their view just for that nuisance, FWIW...
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Massive QFT

This is why i turned it off as well.

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Originally Posted by TosaInu

Hello,

Several different things have been tried when a user didn't select an URLavatar. Right now there a couple default ones. It's still too repetitive, just leaving it blank isn't really encouraging either.

It should be possible to do something.

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Would it be possible to display a transparant, 1x1px avatar?

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Originally Posted by Cambyses

As far as I can see the URL avatars are placed between the Username and custom titles in the post row. I would not be difficult to move them down to sit below the gallery avatar and set the default image as something very small and unintrusive (logo etc).

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:2thumbsup: Sounds like a good suggestion. I'm still playing with my "options", so this may be a daft question: the way URL avatars are set up now, is there any real reason to keep two classes of avatar?

I must say the forum has become a lot more colourful since I enabled the option to see URL avatars :2thumbsup: but I've now turned off the standard "show avatar" option, and see little difference except the lack of duplicates....

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Originally Posted by sapi

Would it be possible to display a transparant, 1x1px avatar?

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Hello sapi,

That would not promote using them.

In my case, and in mouzafphaerre's, and in pever's, the URL-avatar option is not enabled simply because the default avatars take up too much space, and look repetitive.

Changing the default to an invisible, tiny one, and then allowing members to choose their own as they currently can, would be the best of both worlds.

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I'd rather the URL avatars were shrunk into the forum ones' size. :laugh4: Gotta get too much used to mine I guess. ~:pat:
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Umm, so why do I suddenly have an URL avatar? I didn't have one yesterday but today there is one displaying on my profile page.

:gah:

tst

Hello FactionHeir,

I changed the code a bit. Members were always displaying an URLavatar in the topics. Some tried to use a direct URL, that doesn't work, so that's fixed. I also changed some default ones into something else. I thought this one to be more fitting for you (a Bughunter) than the mounted Japanese samurai. You want something else?

More avatars have been added to the pool, the latest are NTW ones (made by The Lordz): http://www.totalwar.org/patrons/pics...dir=avatar/NTW

Ah I see. I thought something in the code went wrong causing a random avatar to be generated to my profile.

Normally, I wouldn't want any, but I guess I'll just have one. I changed the mtw6 that you gave me to mtw8, but now nothing displays.

Hello FactionHeir,

Users have the option to display URLavatars or not, I just realised that I should perhaps also do this for the profile viewing. So, the toggle works there too. You do have the URLavatar, but when you also want to see it, you have to toggle it. Should that option be removed again? Always display it in the profile?

Optional sounds good actually. Lets users with slower connections or byte limited ones choose rather than being forced to load them.

Not an issue for me of course, but an option is better than no option I think.

[edit]
Just tried the checkbox which was unchecked earlier. I think having the option is quite good as it clutters the forum view IMO. For now, I have it turned off.
What my original question was actually asking, was why the URL avatar that I changed to (from the one you gave me) does not display when I view my own profile. It displayed just fine with your old one (and no boxes were checked differently). Do I have to enable URL avatars now to view them in the profile?

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Originally Posted by FactionHeir

What my original question was actually asking, was why the URL avatar that I changed to (from the one you gave me) does not display when I view my own profile. It displayed just fine with your old one (and no boxes were checked differently). Do I have to enable URL avatars now to view them in the profile?

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Yes, when you posted asking why you saw it, I realised that the option didn't work in the profileviewing. So I just copied that line half (?) an hour ago. When a user decides not to display URL avatars, he won't see him in the profile either.

It's indeed a good thing to have it optional in the topicviewing, my question was whether it should also be optional in profileview?

Ahhhh!

I would say make it an additional option for profile as well, so you can choose to have a combination of the two:

a. Not in topic and not in profile
b. In topic but not in profile
c. Not in topic but in profile
d. In topic and profile

That would only need 2 checkboxes rather than 4. It just leads to 4 possible combinations.

Hello Tosa , FactionHeir,

I think they should always displays in profileview, as we don't view them so much. I won't turn them on in forum, as they take many space, but would like to see them in profile.
Slower connections, hm, I have 64kbps, but it doesn't offends me ...

Yeah, FactionHeir's offer is very reasonable, I think.